What are people's experiences of smart watches? What functions do you use the most?
I'm interested in the health options like heart rate etc.
And I know this sounds very stalkerish, but I'm interested in getting one and lending it to my son while he climbs Mt Taranaki. I'm thinking I'll be able to check up that he is still alive if my phone or computer is connected to the watch he is wearing? Is that possible?
Thanks

xanthippe - 2021-01-06 12:38:00

Have a Xiaomi Mi Band 4. Mainly used for checking activities and sleep. Smart watches connect to the phone via bluetooth which only has a range of a few metres, so it would be no use connecting to your phone unless you are beside him. He could however share his activities with you if he has internet connection on the mountain

duncb - 2021-01-06 15:17:00

Smart watches can lead to compulsive and excessive monitoring of notifications and information. Will you be anxious when your son's watch has no coverage inside the mountain crater where the frozen ice is very slippery?

gyrogearloose - 2021-01-06 16:36:00

duncb wrote:

Have a Xiaomi Mi Band 4. Mainly used for checking activities and sleep. Smart watches connect to the phone via bluetooth which only has a range of a few metres, so it would be no use connecting to your phone unless you are beside him. He could however share his activities with you if he has internet connection on the mountain

Errmm some smart watches have SIM card capability and are not tethered to a phone for anything.

nice_lady - 2021-01-06 17:41:00

nice_lady wrote:

Errmm some smart watches have SIM card capability and are not tethered to a phone for anything.

Could you give us an example of one these? Thanks.

shuttleman - 2021-01-06 17:54:00

shuttleman wrote:

Could you give us an example of one these? Thanks.

https://www.apple.com/nz/shop/buy-watch/apple-watch

They offer a GPS + cellular option on all new series 6 watches. Cellular (uses SIM card) start at $899.

sw20 - 2021-01-06 18:08:00

Yeah some models of Apple, Samsung and others offer this.
Google will tell you more.

Edited by nice_lady at 6:10 pm, Wed 6 Jan

nice_lady - 2021-01-06 18:09:00

Function that i like most, is find my phone.
Twice now it has fallen out of pocket in the forest, and despite searching back where i had been, i could not find it.
Then remembered find function, which showed no connection at first(bluetooth), but kept walking while retrying, until finally it connected, meaning i was somewhere close.
Last time was a noisy windy day on the beach just a few days ago, so could not hear it calling out "I'm here" until i was right beside it, darn thing had fallen down out of sight in some tussocks, when i was throwing pine cones for the dog to chase.
But main usage for me, is the sleep quality, stress and blood pressure functions, handy when talking to my doctor. Also like the steps taken counter, use it to make sure dog has had a good walk (10,000/day).
Handy also for a brief look at txt's or answer phone calls (Huawei watch GT2).
- another function i use a bit, is remote shutter, which takes a snap with phone camera, without needing to unlock phone or open camera app.

Edited by gpg58 at 6:58 pm, Wed 6 Jan

gpg58 - 2021-01-06 18:51:00

sw20 wrote:

https://www.apple.com/nz/shop/buy-watch/apple-watch

They offer a GPS + cellular option on all new series 6 watches. Cellular (uses SIM card) start at $899.

My Samsung Galaxy watch LTE version is always connected to my phone and can receive notifications and even fast reply when leaving my phone home.
Also, having a eSIM card, it has a separate phone number for calling, texting and data connection (which I use to listen to Spotify on the go)

Edited by flower_tears at 11:39 pm, Wed 6 Jan

flower_tears - 2021-01-06 23:37:00

i got a samsung galaxy smart watch and found it annoying with notifications, but sometimes i just turn notifications off as nice to have step counter, heart rate, and different watch faces.
i am not allowed a smart watch at some of the places i work though, so most the time wear my g shock

shall - 2021-01-07 20:39:00

shuttleman wrote:

Could you give us an example of one these? Thanks.

Listing of a smart watch I sold recently 2895781284, has a micro SIM tray and micro SD slot as per photo 17

easygoer - 2021-01-07 21:22:00

easygoer wrote:

Listing of a smart watch I sold recently 2895781284, has a micro SIM tray and micro SD slot as per photo 17

It has no health options like heart rate etc

flower_tears - 2021-01-07 23:32:00

flower_tears wrote:

It has no health options like heart rate etc

Agree, looks featurewise, a lot like the early phone watch's i had 10+ years ago, still got one somewhere.
Still getting updates on my huawei, among latest was an analog clock face, with large numbers and hands and just date, in a range of crayon colours, very easy to read, do not like the busy displays with everything tiny, or any digital ones(must be an old git, digital displays always take longer to comprehend than analogue)

Edited by gpg58 at 12:10 am, Fri 8 Jan

gpg58 - 2021-01-07 23:58:00

I like the various watch faces on my Samsung Active. I usually use the same one, but change the colours every day to match what I'm wearing. I actually got it as I have atrial fibrillation so can now watch my heart rate, which is reassuring. Other apps I like are steps, sleep, weather, calendar and world time, so I don't wake my son in Europe by calling at the wrong time.

I like being able to see who is ringing or texting me without having to pull out my phone too and 'find my phone' is very handy.

deecee2 - 2021-01-08 12:33:00

interface straight with the brain

whynot47 - 2021-01-11 18:19:00